Cambodia: Episodes 10 & 11

With the holidays & travel time I didn't have time to write a blog about last week's mega-episode so there is a lot to cover! It's kind of fun this way, though, because we can see how the decisions made over the last week or so on the island have led to our current situation.

Quick episode 10 recap: Stephen, Jeremy & Spencer sided with the "witches coven" to take out Wiggles in the previous episode. Then everyone decided that Stephen was a huge threat because of his unknown advantage & tried to take him out. Jeremy saved him however, with a hidden idol donation. Then Joe doesn't win immunity for the first time ever - literally the first time that he's been at risk in the game! - and Stephen thinks his white whale is finally ready to be harpooned only to be blindsided/backstabbed by Spencer.

In episode 11, Spencer is talking about going his own way, but feels like he still needs to be cordial with Jeremy only to realize that Jeremy may be his only friend left in the game by the end of the episode. Kimmi proposes an all-women's alliance which seems like a great idea to all the ladies out there. All eyes are on Joe in the meantime as he loses another immunity challenge and Keith FINALLY gets the victory he has been working so hard for! Go Keith!! Perpetually underestimated and overlooked because of his age, Keith has long been the only contender against Joe, despite everyone talking about how Jeremy is a challenge beast. I'm so happy Keith finally beat him. Potentially the door is wide open now for a new player to dominate the challenges!

Even forewarned of an all-women's alliance, Spencer & Jeremy vote out Joe because, really, what else can they do? Joe must be eliminated & despite Spencer saying while he voted "this is a million dollar vote" the million dollar vote was already made when he decided to vote out Stephen. If Joe had gone last episode instead of Stephen, then I don't think Kimmi would have suggested the all-women's alliance & I seriously doubt that Tasha would waver in her alliance either.

There's no guarantee that the all-women's alliance will actually come to fruition, but if the women know what they are doing they should go with it. I don't think any of them would beat Spencer or Jeremy in a final tribal, although Tasha & Wentworth would probably beat Keith. They all improve their chances of winning by banding together.


The Score:

 Michal & Ben - Contrarian Ninja Stack: 155 points

1. Tasha (24 pts)
2. Kelley (43 pts)
3. [Stephen (36 pts)]
4. Kimmi (21 pts)
5. [Kass (31 pts)]

Doug & Bri - Survivor MacGyver: 127 points

1. Spencer (17 pts)
2. [Joe (69 pts)]
3. [Shirin (-4 pts)]
4. [Terry (9 pts)]
5. [Ciera (36 pts)]

Bagdrea - Ghost Coaster: 80 points

1. Jeremy (38 pts)
2. [Jeff (0 pts)]
3. [Monica (12 pts)]
4. [Kelly (20 pts)]
5. Abi-Maria (10 pts)

MoonBee - Woofully Inadequate: 61 points

1. [Vytas (-5 pts)]
2. [Woo (8 pts)]
3. Keith (32 pts)
4. [Savage (29 pts)]
5. [Peih Gee (-3 pts)]

Power Rankings:

1. Contrarian Ninja Stack -Tasha is playing a really shrewd game & Wentworth has been crushing it! Kimmi is finally showing her chops a little & breaking away from the Bayon alliance she's been loyal to for so long. Obviously the Ninjas are hoping for an all-women's alliance all the way to the end! Even if we don't get it though, I think Spencer would need to sweep the votes at final tribal for any other team to overtake us at this point.

2. Survivor MacGyver - Rough couple of episodes for Doug & Bri as they lose both Ciera & Joe. Ciera will not be missed & I think they did the right thing to eliminate her when they did. Still, with an all-women's alliance looming, it would have been really fun to watch her scheme away. Joe is obviously the huge loss. He was raking in points left & right and while I don't think he could have won the game, he could have put this team in close contention with the Ninjas had he stuck around another 1-2 episodes. I wish he'd been voted out one episode sooner though, because I found the scenes with him & his father awkward & uncomfortable. Given the choice, I'd rather not have seen that. 

3. Ghost Coaster - Is Abi a lock for final tribal at this point? It would be really hard to have lived with her for 30 days for the sole purpose of knowing you can beat her at final tribal, only to have her knocked out right beforehand. So devastating!! Jeremy, on the other hand, is totally worth rooting for. He's got a better chance than Spencer to make finals at this point because of his hidden immunity idol. Plus he has more ties & relationships with the remaining players in the game that might be able to squeak him through another episode or two.

4. Woofully Inadequate -Keith!! Seriously, Keith could make it to final tribal at this point just by winning all the challenges from here on out. I don't think anyone else out there is as competitive as he is, or enjoys challenges more. He's completely hopeless when it comes to the strategy side of things, so it's nice to see he has other strengths at least. I'll be cheering for him -- I can't imagine what his opening speech would be like at final tribal, but I know it would be one to remember.


Douche of the Week:

Cast your vote for both episodes! I'm voting for Abi twice: in episode 10 for calling Stephen "poopy pants" -- you're not 5 years old Abi, and that kind of situation on Survivor isn't funny, it's completely miserable & dangerous! In episode 11 for numerous reasons, none of which I can actually remember right now.